Stuffed Pumpkin with Wild Rice

Although it looks cute in this photo, I usually cut it into quarters and serve it as a side dish. You could also choose to make smaller slices. It’s especially good with poultry or pork.

Roast Squash with Wild Rice StuffingServes 4 as a side dish
1 squash—a little larger than a softballNote: You can use any winter squash for this dish. I like to use red kuri, carnival or acorn squash.
1½ – 2 cups Wild Rice Pilaf (see previous post)
1-2 cups cream or stock (vary amount based on squash size.)
Salt

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut the top off of the squash as you would a halloween pumpkin to create a bowl with a lid. Make sure your hole around the stem at the top is large enough to get your hand or a spoon into it. Scoop out seeds and pith.

Tina’s Tip: I like to use a Kerr’s canning jar lid to scrape out the squash. If squash does not stand up on its own, slice a small amount off the bottom to give it a flat base.

Season squash cavity with salt. Then fill the squash with rice pilaf, shaking down a bit to compress the rice. Pour cream (or stock) into the filled squash until just before it reaches the top of the rice. Place lid back on top.

Place filled squash in a greased pan with sides. (I like to use a cake or roasting pan, because if the squash is too full it will bubble over and make quite a mess.) Bake for 45-60 minutes, but start checking it at about 30 minutes. Squash should be tender and soft to the touch–but be careful, it is also HOT!

When done, let the squash rest 10-15 minutes before cutting into quarters.